Ankeny baseball coach Joe Balvanz wanted his team to get off to a fast start.
The Hawks did exactly that and then some.
Ankeny scored six runs in the first inning, three more in the second and went on to defeat visiting Des Moines East, 13-3, in five innings in a Class 4A substate quarterfinal on Friday.
“Those early runs took the pressure off,” said Balvanz. “That had been my challenge to them. The goal is to get out to a lead and make them chase you. Usually in a substate game, the first team that can get into the other team’s bullpen is going to win.”
Ankeny (23-13) advanced to Monday’s substate semifinal against Indianola (24-12). East finished the season at 17-24.
The Scarlets had won four straight games and seven of their last eight.
“I wasn’t expecting to 10-run them, but we had some really good hitting in that last inning,” Balvanz said. “That was probably the best inning we’ve had offensively in a while.”
The Hawks scored four runs in the fifth to end the game. Max Watson hit a two-run single to make it 12-3, then Jamison Patton followed with a walk-off single.
Watson went 2-for-3 and drove in three runs.
“Max gets better every day,” Balvanz said. “He’s turning into the player that I thought he could be when he was a freshman (in 2020).”
Patton also went 2-for-3. Tamden Webb-Tate doubled, scored three times and knocked in a run.
Dylan Schlee, Carson Agan and Isaiah Otten each had one RBI. Thomas DeBrower had one of the Hawks’ four steals and scored twice.
“We still had moments where we made some mistakes,” Balvanz said. “We struck out too many times, and we gave them way too many free base runners. Easton (Dunwoody) didn’t have his best stuff, but he battled through it. Dylan turned a double play at second base that really helped us out.”
Dunwoody (4-5) earned the victory, allowing three earned runs on three hits. He walked five and had eight strikeouts.
Dunwoody was able to relax after Ankeny’s big first inning, which included just one hit.
“I can’t remember the last time we scored six runs on one hit,” Balvanz said. “I think the Bench Platoon helped us out there, cheering us on and letting their pitcher know that we were going to keep putting the pressure on.”
Dunwoody needed 103 pitches to get through five innings. Samuel Andrews was warmed up and ready to pitch the sixth inning, but he never had to take the mound.
The Hawks will now prepare to host Indianola, which advanced with a 5-1 win over Ottumwa. Brady Blake hit a two-run homer, his eighth of the season, and improved to 7-2 on the mound by allowing just one hit over the first five innings.
“You can’t let the Blake kid beat you,” Balvanz said of the junior. “We’ll be well prepared for them.”
